Wednesday, 29 December 2010

Installed in 34 countries with the mission of protecting the environment, he says on his website, the American NGO The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has not prevented the extinction of the only beach of the town of Santarem, Vera Paz, either, the inquiry of an archaeological site, pollution of the Rio Tapajos and the increase of deforestation in the region, encouraged by the action of Cargill.

Built in 1951, the Conservancy, with its headquarters in the United States, arrived in Brazil in the 1980s and from the beginning had its actions towards the Amazon region.

In Santarém, as stated on its homepage, "we work in partnership with Cargill to support more than 150 soybean producers. "

For Gilson Rego, the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT) from Santarem, no doubt, "they (NGOs) working explicitly for the Cargill soybean growers. They are working for maintaining soybeans on the region. "

And yet, complains: "The Nature Conservancy takes money from Cargill to clean the 'shed blood', to make up and affect positively all the company's shares, both at national and international levels ".

Thus, the site of The Nature Conservancy, also shown its beneficial for the community, "empowering young leaders: providing the tools and techniques necessary for the management of indigenous lands. "

Friday, 17 December 2010

While Brazil's soccer team is making all of the headlines, there is more serious news affecting the country than the plight of Kaka. The Amazon rainforest is under immediate threat due to proposed changes to environment legislation called the Brazilian Forest Code. If the changes are accepted, deforestation could be set to double.

If the proposed new code comes in, estimates say that:

--Approximately 85 million hectares of the Amazon could be destroyed. This is an area equivalent to the size of England and France together and is more than the total that has been destroyed until now (73 million ha).

--At least 30 billion tons of CO2 could be released into the atmosphere - that is 7 times more than the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions Brazil committed to cut in Copenhagen and 15 times more GHG than China emits in a year.

--All the achievements made by President Lula to protect the Amazon and to reduce Brazil's greenhouse gas emissions (by 38.9% by 2020) will be lost unless he prevents these changes to the Forest Code and defends his legacy.

What is the Forest Code?The Brazilian Forest Code is the progressive environment legislation that helps protect the Brazilian Amazon (and all other native Brazilian forests) and is a cornerstone to Brazil's efforts to protect biodiversity and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

For the last 12 years, NGOs have been fighting to protect this legislation but representatives of agribusiness, biofuels and energy sectors - as well as members of Congress that predominantly represent the rural sector - are pushing for dramatic changes to the Code. The proposed new Forest Code would reduce or even eliminate forest protection and allow deforestation across the board.

Currently, farms and settlements have to conserve 80% of the forest on their land (so-called 'Legal Reserves'), and use it for sustainable timber management - they cannot destroy it. Under the proposed new Forest Code, this could be reduced to 50% in large areas, and as far as 0% in small areas (up to 400 hectares). If all of these areas are deforested, they would release at least 30 billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere - that is 7 times more than the emissions Brazil committed to cut in Copenhagen.

Under the new Code. an amnesty would be given to anyone who committed forest crimes up to July 22, 2008. The new Code's proponents claim that this will promote economic development and ensure that Brazil, the world's second large crop producer and first large beef exporter, will be able "to feed the world."

This is fast becoming a hot political issue, since 2010 is election year in Brazil. As the October national elections approach, candidates are promoting their policies now and aligning themselves. Proposed radical changes to the Brazilian Forest Code are central to this debate.

Sunday, 12 December 2010

Most species of poison dart frogs are small, sometimes less than 1.5 centimetres (0.59 in) in adult length, although a few are up to 6 centimetres (2.4 in) in length. They weigh about 2 grams, depending on the size of the frog. Most poison dart frogs are brightly colored, displaying aposematic patterns to warn potential predators. Their bright coloration is associated with their toxicity and levels of alkaloids. Frogs like the ones of Dendrobates species have high levels of alkaloids, whereas the Colostethus species are cryptically colored and are non-toxic.[5] Unlike most other frogs, they are diurnal, rather than being primarily nocturnal or crepuscular.[6] When born and raised in captivity, poison frogs do not produce the skin toxins which they retain in their native habitat.[7]

They lay their eggs in moist places, including on leaves, in plants, among exposed roots, and elsewhere, and allow the tadpoles to wriggle onto their backs shortly after they hatch. They then carry the piggy-backed tadpoles to water, where the larva remain until metamorphosis. The water is typically a pool, but some species use the water gathered in bromeliads or other plants; and some species provide food, supplying the tadpoles with unfertilized eggs to eat.[6]

Many poison dart frogs secrete lipophilic alkaloid toxins through their skin. Alkaloids in the skin glands of poison frogs serve as a chemical defense against predation, and they are therefore able to be active alongside potential predators during the day. About 28 structural classes of alkaloids are known in poison frogs.[3][16] The most toxic of poison-dart frog species is Phyllobates terribilis. It is argued that dart frogs do not synthesize their poisons, but sequester the chemicals from arthropod prey items, such as ants, centipedes and mites. This is known as the dietary hypothesis.[17] Because of this, captive-bred animals do not contain significant levels of toxins. Despite the toxins used by some poison dart frogs, there are some predators that have developed the ability to withstand them, including the Amazon ground snake (Liophis epinephelus).[18]

Chemicals extracted from the skin of Epipedobates tricolor may be shown to have medicinal value.[19] One such chemical is a painkiller 200 times as potent as morphine, called epibatidine, that has unfortunately demonstrated unacceptable gastrointestinal side effects in humans.[20] Secretions from dendrobatids are also showing promise as muscle relaxants, heart stimulants and appetite suppressants.[21] The most poisonous of these frogs, the Golden Poison Frog (Phyllobates terribilis), has enough toxin on average to kill ten to twenty men or about ten thousand mice.[22] Most other dendrobatids, while colorful and toxic enough to discourage predation, pose far less risk to humans or other large animals.

Like many frog families, dendrobatids have also been affected by the worldwide decline in amphibian populations. Habitat loss (due to logging and farming) and predation by introduced species are among the more common causes, but the cutaneous chytridiomycosis has struck dart frogs the hardest in the past 25 years.[25] Zoos have tried to counteract this disease by treating captive frogs with an antifungal agent that is used to kill athlete's foot in humans.[26]

Gil; We arrived home on Dec.22.
We had a great time with you on Dec.6. Of the 3 excursions in the Amazon; Santarem, Manaus and Parintins, Linda and I voted our day with you number 1 and the a tie between the other two.